Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMHC) S-8Registration of securities for employees

As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 29, 2020

Registration No. 333-_____

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C.  20549

FORM S-8

REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER
THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Company
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)

Amended and Restated 2015 Omnibus Incentive Plan

(Full Title of the Plan)

William F. Bayers
Executive Vice President, Secretary and General Counsel
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Company

125 High Street

Boston, Massachusetts 02110
(Name and Address of Agent For Service)

(617) 351-5000

(Telephone Number, Including Area Code, of Agent For Service)

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act. ☐

CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE

PART I

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE SECTION 10(a) PROSPECTUS

The information required by Item 1 is included in documents sent or given to participants in the plan covered by this registration statement pursuant to Rule 428(b)(1) of the Securities Act.

The written statement required by Item 2 is included in documents sent or given to participants in the plan covered by this registration statement pursuant to Rule 428(b)(1) of the Securities Act.

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PART II

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT

The Registrant is subject to the informational and reporting requirements of Sections 13(a), 14, and 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), and in accordance therewith files reports, proxy statements and other information with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”).   The following documents, which are on file with the Commission, are incorporated in this registration statement by reference:

All documents subsequently filed by the Registrant pursuant to Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14 and 15(d) of the Exchange Act, prior to the filing of a post-effective amendment which indicates that all securities offered hereby have been sold or which deregisters all securities then remaining unsold, shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference in this registration statement and to be part hereof from the date of the filing of such documents.  Any statement contained in a document incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference herein shall be deemed to be modified or superseded for the purposes of this registration statement to the extent that a statement contained herein or in any other subsequently filed document which also is or is deemed to be incorporated by reference herein modifies or supersedes such statement.  Any statement so modified or superseded shall not be deemed, except as so modified or superseded, to constitute a part of this registration statement.

Not applicable.

Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP has opined as to the legality of the securities being offered by this registration statement.  

Section 145(a) of the Delaware General Corporation Law provides, in general, that a corporation shall have the power to indemnify any person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative, other than an action by or in the right of the corporation, because the person is or was a director or officer of the corporation. Such indemnity may be against expenses (including attorneys’ fees), judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by the person in connection with such action, suit or proceeding, if the person acted in good faith and in a manner the person reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation and if, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, the person did not have reasonable cause to believe the person’s conduct was unlawful.

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Section 145(b) of the Delaware General Corporation Law provides, in general, that a corporation shall have the power to indemnify any person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action or suit by or in the right of the corporation to procure a judgment in its favor because the person is or was a director or officer of the corporation, against any expenses (including attorneys’ fees) actually and reasonably incurred by the person in connection with the defense or settlement of such action or suit if the person acted in good faith and in a manner the person reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation, except that no indemnification shall be made in respect of any claim, issue or matter as to which such person shall have been adjudged to be liable to the corporation unless and only to the extent that the Court of Chancery or the court in which such action or suit was brought shall determine upon application that, despite the adjudication of liability but in view of all the circumstances of the case, such person is fairly and reasonably entitled to be indemnified for such expenses which the Court of Chancery or such other court shall deem proper.

Section 145(g) of the Delaware General Corporation Law provides, in general, that a corporation shall have the power to purchase and maintain insurance on behalf of any person who is or was a director or officer of the corporation against any liability asserted against the person in any such capacity, or arising out of the person’s status as such, whether or not the corporation would have the power to indemnify the person against such liability under the provisions of the law.

The Registrant’s amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, a director will not be liable to the Registrant or its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director. The Registrant’s amended and restated certificate of incorporation also provides that it will indemnify and hold harmless each director and officer to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law.

The foregoing statements are subject to the detailed provisions of Section 145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law and the Registrant’s amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated by-laws.

Section 102 of the Delaware General Corporation Law permits the limitation of directors’ personal liability to the corporation or its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duties as a director except for (i) any breach of the director’s duty of loyalty to the corporation or its stockholders, (ii) acts or omissions not in good faith or which involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of the law, (iii) breaches under Section 174 of the Delaware General Corporation Law, which relates to unlawful payments of dividends or unlawful stock repurchase or redemptions, and (iv) any transaction from which the director derived an improper personal benefit.

Reference is made to Item 9 for the Registrant’s undertakings with respect to indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act.

The Registrant maintains directors’ and officers’ liability insurance for its officers and directors.

The Registrant has entered into an indemnification agreement with each of its executive officers and directors that provides, in general, that it will indemnify them to the fullest extent permitted by law in connection with their service to the Registrant or on its behalf.

Not applicable.

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The following exhibits are incorporated herein by reference:

provided, however, that paragraphs (1)(i) and (ii) do not apply if the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in reports filed with or furnished to the Commission by the registrant pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act that are incorporated by reference in the registration statement.

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SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-8 and has duly caused this registration statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in Boston, Massachusetts, on this 29th day of May, 2020.

POWER OF ATTORNEY AND SIGNATURES

We, the undersigned officers and directors of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Company, hereby severally constitute and appoint John J. Lynch, Jr., Joseph P. Abbott, Jr. and William F. Bayers, and each of them singly, our true and lawful attorneys with full power to them, and each of them singly, to sign for us and in our names in the capacities indicated below, the registration statement on Form S-8 filed herewith and any and all subsequent amendments to said registration statement, and generally to do all such things in our names and on our behalf in our capacities as officers and directors to enable Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Company to comply with the provisions of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and all requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission, hereby ratifying and confirming our signatures as they may be signed by our said attorneys, or any of them, to said registration statement and any and all amendments thereto.

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this registration statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated.